Introduction

This site is designed to act as the collection point for the information
and survey data that has been, and will be, obtained as part of the Wallasea
Wetland Creation Project as well as being an online informative stakeholder
tool.

The Wallasea project is being carried out by DEFRA with support from the
landowner (Wallasea Farms Ltd) and with advice from English Nature, the
Environment Agency and the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds.

It involves the creation of new coastal habitat through the ‘realignment’ of
sea defences on a low-lying area of land beside the Crouch Estuary. This
habitat creation is designed to compensate for losses of saltmarsh and
mudflat (and the seabird species that used them) that occurred following
past port developments on the east coast. This project also serves to enhance
the levels of flood protection afforded to the agricultural land behind
the new sea wall.

On behalf of DEFRA, ABPmer have contributed to the scheme design and the
impact assessment work that accompanied this project and we are now conducting
a 5-year monitoring programme to describe how it develops over time. The
monitoring period which began in February 2006 (five months before the
breaching work which was in June/July 2006) and will continue until December
2012. At the end of this period, decisions will be made about how well
the site has developed and what further work may be needed.

This web-site will present the information obtained during this 5-year
programme and will complement the DEFRA
site which contains further details
about the objective of, and background to, this project as well as information
about the consultation work that has supported this project.

Using either the navigation tabs above or the sitemap you will be able to find a range of details including: - maps
which describe
the site, photographs
which show the changes over time, continuous ‘live’ web camera
images (updated every hour), reports and links to other related projects
and research initiatives as well as contact details for those involved
at DEFRA
and
ABPmer.

Contact Details

As of the 1 April 2007, the RSPB will be looking after the management of the site on behalf of Defra. After this date Chris Tyas will be the site manager and he is contactable at: